HTC Hero

Print

Email

Bookmark

Share

Performance

Even with the Sense UI layer, the 288MB RAM on the Hero was sufficient to keep the device chugging along smoothly. There were slowdowns felt in certain apps like the HTC Clock and Peep Twitter client, but these were not crippling, just slightly annoying.

Battery life has been greatly improved on the Hero compared with the Magic. It lasted us just under two days even with frequent use of cellular data for browsing, RSS feeds and Twitter. Battery life will go down if you leave Gmail autosync turned on, but we expect many users to get by at least an entire day with this smartphone.

We had no issues with reception and voice quality. Video calls are not supported, so you'll have to stick with voice communications.

Conclusion

Whether it's physical design or software, the Hero trumps the Magic. That said, we don't find it a good upgrade for those who already own a Magic, unless you really want the 3.5mm audio jack. This is because HTC has already announced that Sense UI will be available for the Magic, so the main differentiating factor will be plugged when the firmware update is released.

But if you looking to buy a new Android phone in Asia now, the Hero is your best bet. It costs just S$30 more than the Magic and you get a few upgrade features in return, not to mention a nicer-looking design. The HTC Hero is available in white or brown but take note that the Teflon coating is only for the white version.

Tags: Smart Phone, E-mail, Apple iPhone, Web Browser, Google Android

« Design and Features